A Handful
by YamiBaki
Summary: Near 'Nate' River x Male Reader. "You need to take it and learn if you want to work with me." "What if I said I didn't want to work with you? What if i said I'd rather do something else instead? I have a hobby you know, and no one can really stop me from doing what I like." (Y/n) challenged. "You'd still work for me, even if you don't want to, you will. I already know you will."


"Arg!" A table flew across the room, as many of Near's coworkers tried to move out of the way, heaving a sigh of relief when the table missed them by a few inches and hit the wall behind them with a loud bang. Turning to face the white haired male, (y/n) crossed his arms and pouted. "Okay... I don't know who it was..." He admitted, as his cheeks began to glow a soft pink with embarrassment. Near glanced up from his dice and spared (y/n) a look of pity, before turning back to his stacking.

"It was the daughter."

"Ah, are you serious!" (Y/n) exclaimed, clenching his head tightly as he cursed in every language he know, which was actually quite a few. Matsuda turned to Mogi with a small frown, leaning in to the taller male to whisper in his ear.

"Hey Mogi." He began, capturing the taller male's attention. "Why was he so angry before? It must have been something big if it made him throw an entire table and destroy a computer." Mogi turned his attention away from Matsuda and watched as (y/n) began to rant on and on about how detective work was just not for him. He turned his gaze towards Near, amazed to see the younger male stacking his dice with deep concentration yet still paying attention to the boy. Turning back to Matsuda, Mogi heaved a sigh and finally responded.

"Near told (y/n) to play some detective games and exercises he had specifically made to help (y/n) with his deduction skills, but sadly, it isn't working." Matsuda nodded in understanding, as his eyes travelled towards (y/n), who sat down away from Near with his arms crossed over his chest and an angry pout on his lips. "Near wants (y/n) to help out with future cases since the two grew up together, but (y/n)'s more of the 'act now think later' kind of guy."

The two continued to whisper to themselves, as (y/n) frowned deeply in his little corner of self-pity. He wasn't cut out for detective work, and he knew he never will be. Growing up at Whammy's house with Near, Mello and Matt had been fun at first, but only because he had been amazed at how smart the three were compared to him and other kids there. Each child had their own talent, and (y/n)'s talent had nothing to do with being a detective. But he guessed this was his fault for praising Mello and Near too much, Mello more than the white haired male, and now Near wanted him to study and work with him.

"You can try again." Near began, not once taking his eyes off of his dice as he stacked them into higher pillars. "I'll have Roger set up the game again, you can use a laptop instead of a desktop. But try not to get angry and destroy it."

Growling under his breath, (y/n) gritted his teeth and sent his long time companion a glare. "Explain to me again why it is that I'm taking this detective game quiz thing? I don't even _want_ to be a detective!"

"You need to take it and learn if you want to work with me." Near responded, as a toy train blew its whistle and chugged on by in its tiny tracks around the white haired male and his stack of dice.

"What if I said I didn't want to work with you? What if i said I'd rather do something else instead? I have a hobby you know, and no one can really stop me from doing what I like." (Y/n) challenged, sending near a look. The white haired male's eye never left his dice, as he continued to stack them as high as he could.

"You'd still work for me, even if you don't want to, you will. I already know you will."

Angry with his reply, the young male stood and picked up a chair, glaring at Near as he prepared himself to throw it at him in blind rage. Matsuda quickly ran towards the (h/c) haired male, lifting his arms to block Near from his sight. Everyone else in the room had taken out their guns and aimed it at him, not afraid to shoot the boy dead if he so much as laid a finger on the white haired detective.

"N-now (y/n)," Matsuda began, giving him a nervous laugh. "Why don't we all just calm down, I'm sure that game isn't that hard. And working with Near isn't all that bad!" (Y/n) tried to look past Matsuda to where Near was, gritting his teeth as he attempted to hurt him with a chair.

"I don't care! I'll kill the bastard! Get out of the way Matsuda San!" Near was calm about everything, too busy stacking his dice to really mind, he knew he would be protected as well as the fact that (y/n) wouldn't really hurt him in any way. The others in the room all began to cock their guns, ready to shoot as soon as Matsuda moved out of the way. Matsuda couldn't help but squeak in fright, not wanting the younger male to be harmed, as an idea popped into his head.

"W-WHAT IF I TAKE YOU OUT?!"

At the sudden suggestion, (y/n) froze on his spot, his eyes that once held nothing but anger, now held confusion and intrigue. Near had stopped his dice stacking and glanced up at Matsuda, curious about what it was that he wanted to do. Noticing that he had gotten (y/n)'s attention, the raven haired male heaved a soft sigh of relief, before turning to gaze deeply into (y/n)'s eyes. "I-I've been pretty bored here, and I wouldn't mind going out for a snack or something... You like cafes right? I can take you to one, my treat." (Y/n) began to calm himself down, slowly placing the chair down as he stared at Matsuda. The raven haired male sent him a soft smile, causing (y/n) to blush lightly, not used to someone being so kind to him after an outburst. Lowering his gaze, the (h/c) haired male pursed his lips, as his cheeks grew hotter the more he thought about it.

"A-a cafe?" He mumbled, as Matsuda placed a hand over his, lowering the chair to the floor and allowing it to sit there, before holding his smaller hands in his own.

"Yup! My treat! What do you say?" His heart was beating fast in his chest, as he glanced towards his hand, confused as to why someone like him was receiving such affection. No one was ever kind to him, once they saw how he was, they stayed away from him. That was one of the many reasons as to why he was so fond of Mello, Near and Matt, they never judged him for the way he was and took him as he was. But this was the first time anyone has ever spoken to him with such a soft tone, smiled at him gently, held his hand or even gazed into his eyes with a calm expression. Unable to say anything, the young male nodded weakly at Matsuda, as the raven haired male heaved a sigh of relief. "That's great!" He exclaimed, happy to see that everyone, including Mogi, had lowered their guns and placed the safety back on. "Well! Let's go?"

With another weak nod, Matsuda gently pulled (y/n) along to walk with him, as they crossed the room towards the door. Near's eyes gazed at (y/n) with an unreadable expression. The white haired teen had not expected this turn of event, he had though (y/n) would have thrown the chair towards a wall, curse at him like normal and stomp his way out of the room, only to return two hour later to retry the quiz. Matsuda's kindness had calmed (y/n) down, which was rare since no one ever bothered to try to tame the short -tempered and impatient boy. Near's eyes suddenly widened at the sight of the blush that coated (y/n)'s cheeks, the way his eyes expressed such hidden happiness as well as the hand that was within Matsuda's hold, tightening as the two walked right out of the room.

Near hadn't taken his eyes away from the door, as his mind began to race with thoughts and scenarios about the two. What if the two hung out more? What if Matsuda started liking (y/n) more? What if his personality completely changes thanks to Matsuda? Suddenly, the one question he hoped to avoid popped into his mind, as his stack of dice began to crumble, falling to the floor and spreading all around him, throwing all his hard work away.

What if (y/n) falls in love with Matsuda's _kindness?_

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

As always, Near had been right.

(Y/n) began to change, but only around Matsuda. He still got angry at Near, he was difficult for anyone to tame him and got impatient with the detective game, unable to finish it and often just leaving it in order to browse the net. But when Matsuda was around, he was happy, did what he could to finish the detective game and would calm himself.

This only brought discomfort to Near, not liking the fact that (y/n) was showing his true self with another person, another _man_.

Near would often ignore Matsuda, and pile him with nothing but work in order to prevent him from having any free time. This plan would have worked, if (y/n) didn't try to find the solution to everything that Near did. He'd get Near to talk to him and then pass on the message to Matsuda, he'd also give up his own free time to help the raven haired male with his paper work, causing him not to have any free time to spend with Near like he used to.

To make matters worse, every time he would try to stack up his dice, the tower would crumble, making it impossible for him to build it up again.

 _"On the bright side Near,"_ Roger would tell him through the headset. _"At least he's doing his detective game, and he's doing better the more he plays. He'll be able to help you and work with you in no time."_

This should have pleased him, since it was his idea to have him work by his side after all, but he didn't like the way things were.

(Y/n) wasn't being himself 100%

He was making himself a false person, all to get Matsuda's approval. Near would know, he had studied psychology at Whammy's when he was bored.

As the weeks passed, Near had been able to crack each and every single case with ease, trying to distract himself from his only friend. That is, until a new case appeared, and he was in a tight spot. He needed someone to help him collect information, especially since it was hard to pin anything on this man without any evidence.

"Is he really that hard to catch?" Matsuda asked, as (y/n) blinked in confusion, surprised that Near hadn't been able to capture the man and close the case like he normally could. Turning to them, the young, white haired male frowned and turned back to his toy car, he hated the sight of (y/n) standing so close to Matsuda, it irritated him profoundly but he never let it show.

"He has a way of hiding himself, if we got footage or any other form of evidence like a confession, then closing this case would be easy." Everyone in the room nodded, thinking to themselves on how they could get that sort of information out of him.

Matsuda heaved a soft sigh, lifting a hand to scratch his hair, before turning to Mogi with a slight frown. "Maybe we can have someone go undercover and get it recorded."

Suddenly, an idea popped into (y/n)'s head, causing the young male to walk up to Near and give him a look of complete and utter determination. "Near! Is he straight or homosexual?"

This question threw everyone off, including Roger, who was on the other side of the line helping with the investigation. Near turned his gaze away from his toy robot to stare at (y/n), this was probably the first time in so long that he has gotten his complete and utter attention without him turning to Matsuda in less than a minute. Without hesitation, Near responded each and every single question that was thrown at him. "He's straight."

"Does he prefer Blondes, Brunettes, Red heads or Raven hair?" (Y/n) continued.

"Brunettes." Near responded.

"A cup, B cup, C cup, D cup or double D?"

"A cup."

"Short or tall?"

Near shrugged his shoulders. "Either or, but he's often seen with shorter girls."

"Short or long hair?"

"Long."

"Personality type?" Now (Y/n) was eager to know more.

"The shy type, or the flirty type. He loves impressing them."

"Types of clothing?"

"Cute, especially if they make the girl look younger than her actual age."

(Y/n) stopped his questioning as he placed a hand on his chin, lost in thought while his eyes gazed at the picture of a buff, business looking man with dark brown hair and brown eyes. Matsuda couldn't help but raise a brow at them in confusion, wondering what it was that (y/n) planned to do.

"Um." Matsuda mumbled, raising a brow at Near, who's eyes seemed to be glued to (y/n). "I'm confused."

Within seconds the young, (h/c) haired male snapped his fingers and stood up straight, bright smile on his lips as he nodded to no one in particular. "I got it!" He exclaimed, turning on his heels, he headed towards the door and mumbled to himself, ignoring the way Matsuda called after him.

"Leave him." Near suddenly said, going back to playing with his toy robot as he stared at the picture on the screen. He knew what (y/n) was up to, it was what he had been preparing him for this whole time, but of course, he didn't bother to listen. Near placed his trust in (y/n), and he knew for a fact that with him, this case can and will be cracked.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

"You actually did it..." Near mumbled in an emotionless tone.

"Of course I did, you needed the help and I actually like this sort of thing. You know that already."

It took everyone a long time to fully understand the situation, all the while (y/n) stood there, dressed like a cute young girl of 14, bickering with an amused looking Near.

A few minutes earlier, (y/n) had burst into the room, causing everyone to turn to him with their guns, ready to shoot him on the spot. A lot of the men in the room were confused, wondering why a cute and beautiful young girl had barged in all of a sudden without a single ounce of fear. Without a moments hesitation, he walked up to Near and smiled, twirling on the spot as his skirt flew up to his thigh. Near had told him he was impressed, inwardly glad to see the smile that was sent his way, as (y/n) bowed his head in thanks. At that moment Matsuda had joked that Near's girlfriend was really pretty, only to be thrown into shock at finding out that the beautiful young girl in the room was actually (y/n) in disguise.

"Are you sure you're ready for this?" Near asked, gazing away from his toy car to turn up to (y/n).

Rolling his eyes, said male flipped his wig's hair over his shoulder in a girly fashion and huffed. "Of course, now give me an ear piece and let's get this done." The white haired male stared at him for a few more seconds, before lifting his hand and handing him an ear piece, a small recording device and a tracking device.

"He will be hanging out at that Italian cafe just a few feet away from the security van, Mogi and Matsuda will head in after you to watch up close." Near began. "I have everyone ready to run after you and take him down should anything happen."

As he explained everything, (y/n) began to fix the devices on, making sure none were visible as he adjusted his clothes.

"I'll ask him the questions you'll be telling me through the earpiece, and you'll hear, see and record everything, right?" Near gave him a nod and began to play with his dice for the first time in a while. He was able to stack them higher than before, but they still fell apart an crumbled to the ground.

Heaving a sigh, (y/n) sent Near a determined look and nodded, fixing the dress at the bust a little and making sure he looked as though he had a nice waist. "Alright, let's do this."

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

The undercover mission had been a success, and they had gotten more information than they needed. They had been right about the drug dealings as well as the thefts, but they never would have imagined the culprit to actually kidnapped and sell little girls online to rich investors and company CEOs. (Y/n) was almost an item, a well priced and highly bid item mind you, had Near not acted quickly enough to save him from that fate.

"UGH that crazy bastard!" The (h/c) haired male grumbled, shivering in disgust at the thought of being sold as a sex toy for an old man. He wiped the towel on his face, trying desperately to not only dry himself but also wipe away the memory of flirting with that perverted man, and staying by his side while asking him every single question that Near had was difficult. "ARGH I can still feel his hands on me!"

Luckily for him, no on else was in the room but Near, who had been trying on countless occasions to rebuilt his city of dice. His beady eyes turned away from the dice to stare at (y/n), watching as said male began to dry his hair furiously. "If I ever see him again, I'm going to kick him so damn hard in his baby-maker!"

(Y/n) had changed out of his costume and into a pair of black pyjama pants and a regular white shirt, as soon as they had gotten to the hotel room where he and Near were staying at. Upon entering the room, the young male had rushed to the bathroom, stripped himself naked and immediately took a long shower.

"To be quite honest, it was your idea entirely." Near commented, ignoring the way the (h/c) haired male sent him a glare.

"Don't bullshit me, you and I both know you had this all planned from the very beginning." (Y/n) growled, turning to glare at his feet, hating the fact he knew he was right. It was obvious that this was what Near had wanted, it was what he had planned since he had found (y/n) and had had him flown over from England. "You even had Matsuda be kind to me... It wasn't genuine." Hearing this, the white haired male stopped his motion, holding the dice in midair as he turned his gaze towards (y/n). The saddened expression he held, the way his shoulders sagged and how he kept quiet around him longer than usual. He was emotionally hurt, thinking that Matsuda's affection and kindness had all been apart of his plan from the very beginning. Not that Near could blame him for thinking that, since he always had a plan at hand, knowing what it was that (y/n) would do and say before he even did or said them.

"He wasn't part of my plan, unfortunately."

Turning his head, the young teen sent Near a confused look, wondering what it was that he was trying to say. Was he confessing to something? That would be a first, since Near normally kept quiet, only asking others what he wanted. But when it came to (y/n), Near would find some way to tell him what he wanted without actually opening his mouth, and to the white haired male's surprise, he always knew what Near wanted without asking.

"I had always known that you were fond of Cosplay." Near explained, as (y/n) made his way towards him, taking a seat in the chair next to his. "At the orphanage, you were always the one to get the approval of the drama teacher, since acting is in your blood. No doubt that with a skill as rare and useful as yours, will you be able to work well for me."

With furrowed eyebrows, (y/n) stared at Near intensely, trying to follow what he was saying. It was true that he was the best in the class when it came to acting, and he did excellent with imitations, as well as make up and costume designs, but how did he know he would work for him? Was this what all that pointless training was about?

"I had wanted you to study up on detective work as well as know as much as you could about it, that way when you had enough knowledge about it, you would be able to assist me in any and all upcoming investigations." The more he talked to the boy and had him by his side, the better his staking skills became, as not a single dice fell from its place. "It went perfectly, however." Stopping his motion, Near allowed his gaze to turn away from his dice and turn towards the male next to him. "Matsuda interfering and the two of you spending time together was not part of my plan. He did aid in your detective studies, but it was rather unwanted, the way the two of you would stay so close to one another."

(Y/n) stayed quiet, unsure of what to say at this point, since this was probably the longest Near has ever talked to him for. "So he really was genuinely kind to me?"

"That he was, however." Slowly, the dice city grew higher and higher, the more the white haired male spoke. "He doesn't know you like I do." Ignoring the look that was sent his way, Near picked up more dice he had in a box next to him and fixed them up, before placing them onto the dice city. "I've seen you angry, confused, difficult and very bipolar. And I've also seen you sad, intrigued, depressed and emotionless." (Y/n) sent the white haired male a confused look, raising his eyebrow at him as though to ask him where this was going. "You're insecure about your waist, thinking it's too girly for a boy your age. You make a lot of mistakes, but you learn from them the first time. You frighten people away with your temper and all your cursing, but the ones who stay are the ones who receive your complete and utter loyalty." Higher and higher the city of dice began to grow, as Near built it faster, determined to have it finished as fast as he could, because there was one thing he knew about (y/n) that no one else did. "Matsuda has only seen a few sides of you, the fake ones you made up to appear better before his eyes. But I know what you like and what you hate, how you act when you're disappointed, and the tiniest little thing that makes you laugh and smile the most." After placing the last five dice at the top of his dice city, Near turned to the boy and sent him a rare smile. "Go ahead."

(Y/n) didn't hesitate to stand, as he took one of Near's robots that was closest to him and began to destroy the dice city. He made fake roaring noises and started knocking each and every single dice down, enjoying the way they made their little noise as they pitter-pattered against each other and onto the floor. Near watched with a smile, glad to have finished the dice city in time, it was worth all of the effort and time he had placed into building it, because the smile on (y/n)'s face at that moment was something for his eyes only, since he knew the (h/c) haired male never showed it to anyone.

Once the city of dice was completely destroyed, (y/n) let out a happy laugh and sat himself down, hugging the toy robot close to his chest, his smile not once leaving his lips.

"Matsuda may have seen a few things, but he hasn't seen it all." Near suddenly said, as he stood from his chair and made his way towards him. Placing a hand on (y/n)'s cheek, the white haired male watched with amusement as the boy before him stopped his laughing. (E/c) eyes watched him with curiosity, wondering what it was that was making Near act this way all of a sudden.

"I'v seen the bad and the good. I've seen you beat up a grown man three times your size, and cry over the fact that you stepped on a ladybug." (Y/n)'s cheeks began to glow a bright red, as Near leaned his face closer and closer to him. "I've seen it all, and although you can be a handful at times, I wouldn't want to have it any other way." As their lips connected, (y/n) finally understood why Near was so insistent on having him work by his side.

Near had even spent days building a city made of dice for him, because he knew all along what would make him the happiest when he felt sad.

knocking something down always made him smile and laugh his little heart out.

 ** _"I'm selfish, impatient and a little insecure. I make mistakes, I am out of control and at times hard to handle. But if you can't handle me at my worst, then you sure as hell don't deserve me at my best."_** **\- Marilyn Monroe**


End file.
